Gurnahide
Gurnahide is a mid-boss in Blaster Master Zero, appearing in Area 5. Physical Appearance Gurnahide resembles a gurnard, also known as a Triglidae. It has an orange armored face with three green eyes, a slender yellow body with four cyan tails, six spiny legs, and a pair of green pectoral fins covered in blue spots. General Information Gurnahide appears as the second mid-boss in the Man-made Sea Area. Defeating it grants the Turret Sub-weapon, which allows Jason to drop a turret that fires a spread of shots in random directions and also serves as a decoy. Attacks Gurnahide starts at the right side of the arena and moves to the left throughout the battle. It can consecutively fire three blue projectiles from its center eye or can fire a spray of seven pink projectiles. When Gurnahide reaches half health, it will spread its pectoral fins. With the fins open, Gurnahide can fire yellow energy balls from its fins, first aimed at the player, then firing in random directions. These attacks act independently from the attacks from its eyes, meaning it can perform multiple attacks simultaneously. Strategy When Gurnahide’s eyes flash blue, it is about to shoot the blue projectiles; these are physical projectiles, and thus can be destroyed, and may occasionally drop Capsules. When Gurnahide’s eyes flash pink, it is about to shoot the pink projectiles; it fires seven projectiles with 20° between each, with the middle projectile aimed at the player. To deal with Gurnahide’s constant approach, almost any attack will send it to the right a bit, meaning enough attacks in quick succession can easily counteract its approach. Gurnahide’s farthest position to the right is its starting position, and it never makes it to the very left end of the arena, even if left alone; there will always be a small area for the player to stand. In some situations, it is better to let Gurnahide be at its leftmost position instead of always forcing it back; one such situation is when it reaches half health and opens up its pectoral fins, as it is usually easier to avoid its attack by moving forward while rapidly firing at Gurnahide. Destroying the fins should be a priority when they unfold, as they can make the battle much more difficult; however, if Gurnahide is at low enough health, damaging it should be of higher priority. Using Reflect, Jason is able to nullify all of Gurnahide’s attacks, but needs to be careful not to get too close to Gurnahide. It is preferable to stay at the left edge of the arena, as Jason cannot actively push back Gurnahide, and Gurnahide cannot reach the left edge of the arena. Jason can simply leave the shield up and wait for Gurnahide to be defeated, as all of its attack options are nullified and sent back at it. Gurnahide has an armored head, meaning it receives much less damage than normal. Its unarmored body can be attacked by using penetrating weapons, such as Penetrator, Reflect, and Wave; Ignition Bombs can also damage Gurnahide in this way by placing one down and having Gurnahide walk over it. Using Striker, Jason can fire it rapidly when at close range; these will only hit Gurnahide’s face. When Gurnahide shoots its blue projectiles, Striker can hit them and activate its lightning chain, which attacks the face and the unprotected backside. When Gurnahide reaches half health and spreads its fins, the lightning chain will always activate, effectively circumventing Gurnahide’s defense. Gurnahide is weak to Wave, causing it to be stunned for a period of time and taking more damage than usual. Using Wave’s extra damage and stun can make quick work of Gurnahide, defeating it in less than 5 seconds. Destroyer Mode Gurnahide is immune to all Gun types except Blaster and Penetrator. It is also ideal that Jason has enough Gun to be able to use Reflect, as Gurnahide’s fins have no immunities. If Jason has Penetrator, he should keep a fair distance away while attacking Gurnahide. Because of the lower firing rate of Penetrator, Gurnahide will be progressing to the left. It is beneficial to destroy Gurnahide’s blue projectiles once they’ve traveled a bit instead of as soon as they’re released, as they have the opportunity to drop Capsules, allowing for Gun upgrades if applicable; alternatively, after releasing its blue projectiles, Jason can switch to Blaster (or Auto, but this does no damage) and pelt Gurnahide with projectiles to send it back, uncovering any potential Capsules dropped. Ignition Bombs should also be used to deal moderate damage to Gurnahide before it reaches half health. Once Gurnahide reaches half health, if Jason has Reflect, he should utilize it as a safe method to take out the pectoral fins. Otherwise, a combination of Grenades and Flash Bombs should be used when damaging the fins. Once Gurnahide’s fins are gone, all that matters is dealing damage and avoiding its pink projectiles. If Jason does not have Penetrator, he will have to slowly whittle away with Blaster. As stated before, it is important to destroy the blue projectiles in case they drop Gun Capsules, which can allow Jason to obtain Penetrator. Ignition Bombs allow for greater damage during the first half of the fight, while Grenades are used to damage the fins and Flash Bombs to delay the fins’ projectile attacks. Trivia *Gurnahide is one of two major mid-bosses in Blaster Master Zero to not reappear in Area 9; the other is Remote Blaster. Category:Bosses Category:Blaster Master Zero Category:BMZ Bosses Category:Organic Mutants